Unless otherwise indicated herein, the approaches described in this section are not prior art to the claims in this application and are not admitted to be prior art by inclusion in this section.
Modern electronic systems typically require some form of power conversion. The popularity of portable equipment (e.g., smartphones, portable computers, etc.) has driven the technology and the requirement for converting power efficiently. DC-DC converters called switching regulators (often referred to simply as “switchers”) are especially suitable for use in portable electronic devices, and can either step-up (boost) or step-down (buck) DC electrical power.
Switching regulators used in portable electronic devices include a class of switching regulators called “buck-boost” switching regulators. The kind of buck-boost switchers used in portable electronic devices typically operate in forward buck mode and in reverse boost mode. In forward buck mode, a voltage at an input port is bucked to produce a regulated voltage at an output port. In reverse boost mode, a voltage at the output port is boosted to produce a regulated voltage at the input port.